Published: October 30, 2002

Samuel J. Palmisano, the chief executive of I.B.M., will assume the added role of chairman from Louis V. Gerstner, who will retire from the computer maker at the end of the year. Mr. Palmisano, 51, replaced Mr. Gerstner as chief executive in March. Mr. Gerstner, 60, was hired in 1993 and restored I.B.M.'s profit a year later, after $15.9 billion in net losses from 1991 to 1993. He will be an adviser to I.B.M. after leaving the company and its board, a spokeswoman, Carol Makovich, said yesterday. Since Mr. Palmisano's promotion from chief operating officer, the 29-year I.B.M. veteran has cut jobs and costs and shed underperforming businesses to maintain profitability amid slumping demand. Such efforts will continue with the greater authority he will have after the departure of Mr. Gerstner, the company's leader for almost a decade, investors and analysts said.